"GPS'd this at 6.11M from Crane Pond! Yes, you can drive all the way to Crane Pond! Make sure you've got a pretty good clearance 4 wheel drive. The creek crossing is AWESOME. The hike is uneventful, except for some pond views, for the first 2 miles. Then the work begins and up ya' go with lots of roots. Rained 2/3 of the day and I hiked in trail streams for at least 3 miles. I was drenched and had no view at the summit. Checked out the old fire tower base and the geo marker and headed back down. " — Retiredtop2004 • Jul 18, 2021

"The views on Pharaoh were way more beautiful than I anticipated. There were multiple lookouts along the mountain top offering a variety of views to take in from all directions. The trail was great, not too difficult although the final stretch to the summit wasn't very well marked in places. We parked at the first parking lot which added 4 miles to our day. " — DeliriumTrigger • Aug 26, 2020

"A day out for the pups, although hotter than we thought. Parked at the lot for Crane Pond and walked the road to crane Pond where we found a DEC Officer putting out a campfire - in the parking lot - that was left unattended. It was a quiet day and the pups enjoyed the trails (and the marshes) along the way. Roughly 1500 ft of gain via the Pharaoh Mtn trail (in and out) and ~ 10.1 miles with a few small side trips to let the pups swim." — deb-and-rob • Aug 8, 2020

"Beautiful day, cold, snow but not deep enough, only needed micro-spikes to complete this hike. Had a buddy with me that we haven't hiked together in 30 years so it was a great time for us! He hasn't been in the game in that long and he greatly enjoyed getting back into it and hopes to continue! Clear skies at the summit but breezy and cold. Got some great photos and got out of the wind quickly." — hbotc • Dec 21, 2019

"Tons of bugs but otherwise a great walk. Parked in the first lot on Crane Pond Road, but realistically could have driven all the way down to the lot where the red-blazed trail begins, cutting off about 1.9 miles of road-walking each way." — nairon • Jul 4, 2019

"With rain in the forecast for Saturday we were looking for something the dogs would enjoy that didn't require any big crossings - so we decided on another visit to Pharaoh. There are a lot of trails to choose from, we decided to head in from Crane Pond and do the loop trail. Throughout the day we would climb ~1950' over the 15 mile loop and enjoy true northeast Spring weather with some snow, sleet, rain and sun!" — deb-and-rob • Apr 27, 2019

"A good hike to start the summer season. Took the babies with us. A little wet and slippery on the trail, had heavy rain the day before. Sky had some overcast but views were still pretty good. A nice warmup!" — hbotc • Jun 2, 2018

"Hiked with Kellie. Started out around 8:45 from the first parking area. The 2 mile road walk to the final parking area at Crane Pond was nothing special. Once into the woods on the actual trail there were tons of mosquitos, but very few if any black flies. We encountered tons of black flies on the summit, which forced us to only spend a couple minutes up there before returning the same way we ascended. Weather was warm, humid, and cloudy. Still nice to get a hike in. " — LGH-Tom • May 26, 2018

"Hiked with my brother Tommy. Sibling Summit Something Saturday! FOR THE RECORD! ABOUT THE ROAD! I drive a Subaru Crosstrek. We parked at the farthest parking area on Crane Pond. We’ll call that #3. We signed the register, and hiked into parking area #2, keeping an eye on the road & just how bad it ... wasn’t? With some care, I absolutely could have made it to parking area #2. There were multiple trucks & SUV’s there. There were some blown out spots, but nothing to write home about. We hiked on, & saw the “water crossing” part of the road & opted to yellow trail around it. When we got to parking area #1, a few trucks, and based on the scum on their tires, and lack of mud spray on them, I would say the water was ~8”. Probably could’ve done it. Oh well. Extra mileage, extra exercise! ANYWAY back to the hiking part of this trip report. Hazy, hot, sweaty! Holy, moly, MOSQUITOES! Wow! Even with Picardin spray all over my body, I was ruthlessly eaten through my leggings & long sleeve top. We hustled at around 3.5mph until we hit the uphill at the end. The trail was really nice, after the long road walk. It was soft underfoot, well maintained, easy to follow and generally pleasant..." — kellieirene • May 26, 2018

"Was just a good day to stay local, this mountain is a favorite, it is in our neighborhood and it has some challenges so we get some exercise. It is nine miles RT and a mix of terrain, the weather was cloudy but temps.were average for this time of year and the views maybe not the best were still to be had! The 1st 2 miles is on the old road to the original trail head at Crane Pond. This road is closed but if you have a good 4 wheel vehicle you could still drive to the pond and start from there. We started from the new trail head and walked the 2 mile road in. Once on the trail from Crane Pond it is about 2.5 miles to summit, the 1st 1.5 miles is flat and then the climb begins steady moderate to the top. We had some ice near the top so we broke out the microspikes which worked out well, great views of Schroon Lake and Treadway Mountain but the High Peaks were under clouds." — hbotc • Dec 2, 2017